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Within a short walk of downtown Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., notable both for its pockets of offbeat shopping as well as its offbeat history, one can find funky jewellery, homemade perogies and the site of the first hanging in all the Northwest Territories. (It was in 1879; the fellow was apparently convicted of killing and eating his entire family.)

If that isn't enough to lure you out to the Fort during a visit to Edmonton (Fort Saskatchewan is 25 kilometres to the northeast), perhaps you will be moved by the city's efforts to spruce up its downtown by replacing sidewalks and adding attractive street fixtures, along with pots overflowing with flowers.

Those improvements are welcomed by business people like Tina Prins, who grew up in Fort Saskatchewan and has fond memories of its thriving downtown from her own childhood. When she opened her gift store, The Blu Poppie, she set her sights on a spot downtown, even choosing to buy the building rather than lease space.

"When I opened, a lot of people asked me why I didn't go across the highway" to one of the newer power centres, chockful of big-box stores and franchise food outlets.

"But I think that the heart of a city is in the downtown," Prins says.

Many of her neighbours are longtime downtown business owners, like the hair salon next door and the jeweller down the block. There's the iconic, small-town Chinese restaurant across the street (House of Hong), and the less iconic, newly opened Ukrainian café nearby.

The downtown is adjacent to plenty of beautiful parkland alongside the river, as well as the site of the historic North West Mounted Police fort, and the original location of another local employer, the provincial jail, which first opened in 1915.

The local museum is housed in the old warden's house, along with some historic remnants from the jail, like keys, numbered cellblock plaques and metal rings fashioned by long-ago inmates.

Lending the scene a particularly pastoral air, a flock of sheep bring their formidable lawn-mowing skills to the parkland around the reconstructed fort four afternoons a week, from Thursday to Sunday.

Thursday afternoons are an especially good time to drop by Fort Saskatchewan. You can supplement your shopping and historical tour with a little more shopping at the weekly farmer's market.

Much of the day-to-day shopping for the Fort's 18,000-plus residents takes place outside of downtown, in the big-box stores that fill the many strip malls along the highway.

Downtown you'll find a smaller selection of specialty stores, little restaurants and gift stops, like the Blu Poppie on 100th Ave., which stocks a good selection of unique gift items, jewellery, some linens, handbags, cards and specialty foods. Down the street you'll find Treasures Past and Present, which, as the name implies, focuses on new and antique collectibles.

While it strays into the realm of history, there is some shopping to be had at the town's museum, too. A little gift shop offers small souvenirs like postcards, as well as Fort Saskatchewan T-shirts that pay tribute to the community's lawn-mowing sheep, which read, "If Ewe's Eatin', Ewe's Workin'." Downtown is also a fine place to grab a bite, whether it's the buffet at House of Hong or a slice of homemade pie at Auntie Sue's.

Or visit Dovgan Ukrainian Cafe and Bakery, which started out as a coffee shop and bakery but evolved into a restaurant, too, offering a menu of substantial Eastern European fare like cabbage rolls, borscht, nalesniki and piroshki.

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